Constraints on and Options forTaiwan's Meaningful Participationin the Specialized Agencies of theUnited Nations

In 2009 Taiwan became an observer to the World Health Assembly (WHA), the first time it had officially participated in a United Nations (UN)-affiliated body since 1971. Encouraged by this success, Taiwan has sought to replicate the WHA model for other UN bodies such as the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Unfortunately, this breakthrough has not yet paved the way for Taiwan's participation in more UNaffiliated bodies. This paper analyzes (1) the WHA model and the concept of meaningful participation; (2) the four parameters (title, status, where, and how) Taiwan needs to consider in order to apply the WHA model to the specialized agencies of the UN; and (3) Taiwan's options for the future. This paper argues that to maximize Taiwan's chances of UN participation, the approach will not only have to take Mainland China's concerns into consideration, but also needs to be within the boundaries of the existing statutes and conventions without the need for a special exception to be made in Taiwan's favor. Hence, it is suggested that Taiwan should seek to join the ICAO, IMF, WBG, WHO, and WMO with official governmental representation while simultaneously encouraging its civil society organizations (CSOs) to participate as non-governmental organization (NGO) observers in the FAO, ILO, IFAD, IMO, ITU, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WIPO, andUNWTO. It is hoped that this two-pronged approach will maximize and accelerate Taiwan's participation in the specialized agencies of the United Nations.